This invention relates generally to panel fasteners such as those used to fasten together large insulated panels of cooler room walls, floors and ceilings. The invention relates more particularly to the strikes of such panel fasteners and to methods of manufacturing such strikes.
Commercial walk-in coolers, like those commonly found in convenience stores and commercial food storage facilities such as super markets, are typically constructed of insulating wall, ceiling and floor panels that are fastened snugly together. The panel ends are shaped to fit together in tongue and groove fashion and are provided with latch type fasteners for drawing and holding adjacent panels together. The latches themselves commonly comprise a hook and cam assembly that is mounted to one panel for latching engagement with a pin assembly that is mounted to an adjacent panel. The pin assembly is often referred to as a strike. Panels may have several of these fasteners, depending on their size.
Panel fastener strikes are commonly comprised of a metal casing that has two confronting, spaced face plates from which flanges unitarily extend. A pin extends between the two face plates which is accessible to a hook in latching the pin to a hook assembly mounted to an adjacent panel. Each end of the pin is mounted to a face plate by passing it through a boss that bulges outwardly from the face plate and swedging it over the boss recess on the back side of the face plate. Exemplary of such a panel fastener strike is model no. 1155 sold by Kason Industries, Inc. of Shenandoah, Ga.
Both the hook assembly and pin assembly of these fasteners are mounted to the ends of the panels with their flanges overlaying the panel faces. In fastening two panels together the hook is swung down into the pin assembly channel and into hooking engagement with the pin. Hook engagement with the strike is done with an over-center camming action as it is rotated with a wrench. This draws the pin and hook assemblies together which in turn draws the two panels to which they are mounted into snug engagement.
Sometimes the hook and pin assemblies are slightly misaligned or cocked when placed adjacent one another for fastening. When this occurs excessive force is applied by the hook to the pin. In this situation the two face plates of the pin assembly cam spread slightly, as shown in FIG. 1 of the drawing, as the far end of its face plate digs into its panel. This cocking and spreading causes an end of the pin P to cock in its boss B. In severe cases this can actually cause the fastener to fail by the pin separating from its mount. The present invention provides a commercially sound and viable solution to this problem.
In a preferred form of the invention a panel fastener strike comprises a unitary casing formed with two substantially parallel face plates unitarily bridged together by a strap at one end and formed with two substantially coplanar flanges at an opposite end. A pin is mounted to the two face plates spaced from the casing strap.
In another preferred form of the invention a panel fastener strike is made by forming a metallic blank with two sections each having a pin mounting hole and with the two sections bridged together by a strap. Each section is bent to form two substantially coplanar flanges and two face plates with the pin mounting holes located in the face plates and with the strap extending from the face plates. The two face plates are bent adjacent their junctures with the strap to a substantially parallel position while simultaneously locating opposite ends of a pin within the two face plates mounting holes.